Man Misdiagnosed With Sexually Transmitted Disease Died After Hiding Symptoms For One Year

A man from UK, who was misdiagnosed to have sexually transmitted infection, hid his symptoms from his family and eventually died from his real disease. It turned out that he had penile cancer, but because of shame from his previous wrongful diagnosis, he kept his illness to himself for one year. He succumbed to cancer in December last year.

Nigel Smith first sought medical consult after discovering a red lump on his penis. He was then referred to a facility that specialises in sexual health. The staff told him that he most likely contracted genital warts. Being the loyal and honest husband that he is, the diagnosis came as a shock to him. Medications were prescribed, and Smith was told that his symptoms will eventually resolved. Apparently, the recommended medical treatment did not provide relief. But rather than asking for further help, Smith opted to keep mum about his symptoms and hid his condition from his wife for a year. During that time, he kept sleeping in their spare room, justifying that his snoring is the problem.

He finally told his wife about his situation when a second tumour developed. His wife persuaded him to go back to the doctor for a check. In 2011, he underwent a biopsy procedure, which revealed that he had stage 3 penile cancer. This disease is rare but is common in men aged 60 and above.

Smith’s daughter, Tammy, confirmed that his father felt embarrassed upon learning that he had symptoms of a sexually transmitted infection. She said that her father would have been diagnosed earlier if only the health team investigated on his father’s complaint more seriously. "He felt angered, as he had been happily and faithfully married to my mum for more than 30 years," she said. "He was told that he had a genital wart and was given medication but it had no effect. I'm convinced that if his symptoms had been taken more seriously from the start his cancer would have been diagnosed much sooner."

After being correctly diagnosed, Mr Smith underwent partial penectomy and was under remission for two years. But in September last year, secondary tumours developed in his lungs, brain, adrenal glands, liver and spine. After learning about this, Mr Smith formulated his own bucket list but was not able to fulfill everything he hoped to do.

"He always said that he was put on Earth for a reason and if he could help just one person with penile cancer to get a speedier diagnosis then his job was complete," Tammy said. She has since become an ambassador for Orchid, a UK male cancer charity that hopes to raise penile cancer awareness. "There's nothing more that I want to do than keep my dad's honour and carry on raising awareness," she closed.

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